Former CEO of SYZYGY AG and Google Country Director takes helm of Incubeta as Alan Lipschitz steps down

Lars Lehne has been appointed Group CEO of Incubeta, the independent digital marketing services group. The former SYZYGY AG CEO will be taking over from the founder Alan Lipschitz, whose company Interface made the reverse acquisition of IncuBeta Holdings in 2011. Alan will be moving into the role of Chairperson of the Board of Directors of Incubeta.

Lars brings with him more than 30 years of industry experience. Prior to Incubeta Lars spent four years as Global CEO at SYZYGY, a publicly listed WPP company. Before that, he spent seven years at Google as Country Director Agency DACH, paving the way for the tech giant quadrupling revenues in Germany. He has also held various senior management positions in agencies including Maxus, GroupM, Carat and MEC.

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In addition to his current role as new Group CEO of Incubeta, Lars is a member of the advisory board of Yext, and betterplace.org, a Berlin based NGO. He’s also an Angel Investor in CLAIMINI GmbH. As Group CEO, Lars will be leading company positioning and growth, including its operations in North America, driving the business strategy and further uniting the group across the globe.

Incubeta operates across 14 countries with offices in cities including London, New York, Los Angeles, Madrid, Sydney and Cape Town. In 2013 the highly successful Net Media Planet (NMPi) was acquired, which established significant growth for Incubeta as it boosted its advertising offerings. The subsequent acquisition in 2016 of forward-thinking marketing technology specialist DQ&A, extended the company’s geographical and product growth. This was followed by the acquisition of market leading creative specialist, Joystick, in 2018. Through these acquisitions, Incubeta offers clients a full suite of unrivalled services connecting Media, Technology and Creative.

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In the last twelve months, Incubeta has launched several new innovative platforms. This has included the award-winning proprietary Seamless technology, including Seamless Search – which measures the incrementality of paid and organic SEO keywords – and Seamless Creative – which unifies media activity and creative assembly at scale. The company has also made a series of new appointments including senior hire John Cawdery as US CEO.

Alan Lipschitz, Founder and Chairperson of the Board, comments: “Having started a small South African business many years ago, I am so very proud of how far the company has come. By building a fantastic team around me and adding inspirational businesses from around the world, Incubeta has grown into a leading player in digital marketing services. The company is in a great place, yet I believe in order to accelerate pace and to meet the challenges of the future we need a different type of leader.

“I have the utmost faith Lars is the leader the company needs to take Incubeta forward. He has the expertise to bring the team further together, drive clear strategy, and build on the fantastic foundation I have been able to create with my wonderful team. So it is with great pride and pleasure that I hand the mantle of Chief Executive Officer of the Incubeta Group to Lars Lehne.”

Lars Lehne, Group CEO of Incubeta, comments: “I’m thrilled and honoured to be joining such a forward-thinking and innovative company. Incubeta has continued to grow during one of the most challenging years for the industry which is a testament to the quality and hard work of every team member across the globe. The company has flourished under Alan’s leadership and it’s a great privilege that he’s trusting me to take his dream forward.

“As marketing continues to evolve at a rapid pace, it’s harder now than ever before for brands to connect with their customers. By integrating Media, Technology, and Creative in a seamless way Incubeta has developed the right services and products to help clients grow in a digital world. Incubeta puts the ownership of the customer experience back into the hands of its clients. I can’t wait to see what the next chapter for Incubeta looks like.”

Luke Judge, CEO of Incubeta UK and US Group, comments: “It’s fantastic to see the growth and achievements of Incubeta since it’s conception and subsequent acquisitions. It has been a pleasure and honour to be a part of this journey and I’m excited to see the growth accelerate with Lars in place.

“Businesses are having to work harder, smarter and faster than ever before, owing to market volatility and technology. Having Lars join as Incubeta Group CEO will put Incubeta in a strong position to maximise growth in this complex digital marketing landscape. I’m looking forward to working with Lars, who will be an outstanding leader and member of the Incubeta global team.”

John Cawdery, CEO of Incubeta US, comments: “It’s great to see Lars join as Group CEO as part of the investment in top talent across the organisation. Incubeta has a unique proposition in the market and I believe Lars will be the driving force behind us achieving our aggressive growth plans in the US. I’m excited for the future of the company and to be part of this next chapter in its history.”

Sara Francis, CEO of Incubeta Joystick, comments: “We’re excited to have Lars at the helm of Incubeta on a global scale and to help further drive our growth in the US. We have grown significantly over the past few years and see this as a great step toward that continued success. I’m looking forward to working with Lars and cementing Incubeta’s position as one of the leading global digital marketing and advertising groups.”

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